Admission: I didn't know about the Alamo. Never took much interest in a last stand against Santa Ana's army. I thought it was about territory.

For Texans the Alamo was a glorious martyrdom.

One of my ancestors on my mother's side, Andrew Kent, was part of the Gonzales contingent that arrived at the Alamo as Santa Ana was beginning to surround the mission. He was, of course, killed there. I took my mother to the reunion of descendants of the Gonzales contingent several times.

I have a copy of the deed for 640 acres of land that was given to Kent's surviving family for his service at the Alamo.

As a kid this was a source of pride for me. Only later in life did I realize the history of the Texas revolution was more complicated than I had realized.

On the other hand, another of my mother's ancestors, James Nichols, was a anti-slavery and pro-union during the Civil War. He wrote a book, Now You Hear My Horn, about his life in frontier Texas.

So my Texas roots are a mixed bag.